Frame fender

ABSTRACT

A corner protector, frame fender used to protect, during shipment or moving, a frame, piece of glass or any other generally rectangular object, comprising a relatively square, flat base of corrugated cardboard or paperboard which has a plurality of pre-scored, spaced lines along one diagonal, and is pre-cut along the other diagonal from the corners to the outside scored lines, able to be folded into one of a plurality of possible thicknesses, to fit the corners of the object to be protected.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Moving framed pieces of art, pieces of glass or other rectangularobjects which are fragile requires protection for the objects, whetherthe move is a local move or a long-distance move. Boxes are available inwhich to pack these objects but protecting the four corners of eachobject, whether it be a painting or a piece of glass is important. Noconvenient way to protect the corners of various sized objects has yetbeen devised because there are so many sizes to contend with, from 1″thick to 5″ thick, or more, and every size in between. In addition,there are many types or styles of frames such as slick chrome, baroqueplaster, wood and many others.

There are some corner protectors available in the market, such aspolystyrene corner protectors and prefabricated paperboard corners.However, these available corners are not adjustable and come in one sizeonly. They are available in various sizes, which must be purchasedseparately, depending on the size needed.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Applicant's invention comprises a relatively square piece of corrugatedcardboard or paperboard. It is pre-scored and pre-cut to be folded intoa protective slip-on corner. Optionally, there is a strip of tapeattached to the corrugated cardboard to hold the folded corner protectoror frame fender together and make a snug-fit to the corner of the frame.The tape may also be included as a separate item.

Applicant's corner protector is designed to fit a plurality of differentthicknesses of frames, from about 1″ to about 5″ thick, as well as allof the sizes in between. The user will measure the thickness of theobject to be protected and then can then fold and assemble thecorrugated cardboard corners to fit exactly the size required, so thatthe corner protectors fit tightly on the corners of the object to beprotected and will not fall off. Four corner protectors are normallyused to protect the object (one placed on each corner). Once theprotective corners are attached, the object is placed into a crate orbox, ready for shipping or moving.

Applicant's corner protectors protect the frame and/or the art or glassfrom being damaged while transporting it from one location to another.Each corner must be cushioned to take up the shock and stress that istaking place while moving or shipping such items.

OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, several objects and advantages of the invention are asfollows:

It is an object of the present invention to provide an adjustable cornerprotector for the frame of a picture, a piece of glass or otherrectangular object.

Another object of the invention is to provide a single corner protectorwhich is adjustable by folding to a variety of sizes, so that the cornerprotector fits snugly on any sized object to which it is applied.

These, as well as other objects of the invention, will become obviousfrom the following description in which:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of the corner protector of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a depiction of a person cuttting the corner protector to size;

FIG. 3 is a depiction of the corner protector being folded on the scorelines;

FIG. 4 depicts the folding of half of the corner protector to create thecorner shape;

FIG. 5 depicts the final folding of the corner protector and the placingof tape; and

FIG. 6 depicts the completed corner protector being placed on a pictureframe.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring now to FIGS. 1-6, there is shown a relatively square, flatbase of corrugated cardboard or paperboard 10 having a series of scoredor serrated lines 12, 14, 16, 18, 20, 22, 24, 26, 28, 30 which arelocated on the diagonal 32-34 of cardboard base 10. The space betweeneach of the scored lines, 12-30 may be any thickness of frame, such as 1inch, 2 inch, 3 inch, 4 inch or 5 inch. As shown, the distance between,for instance scored line 12 and scored line 22, is one inch. Thedistance between scored lines 14 and 24 is two inches, between lines 16and 26 is three inches, between lines 18 and 28 is four inches andbetween lines 20 and 30 is five inches.

On the opposite diagonal from corner 36 to corner 38, cardboard base 10is cut completely through from each corner 36, 38, to the outside scoredlines 20 and 30. In use, the person shipping an object, such as a frame,piece of glass, etc., would measure the thickness of the object todetermine the thickness of the corner protector needed. As shown in FIG.2, the thickness desired is 3 inches. The user or shipper 52 would use aknife or box cutter 54 to cut through base 10 along lines 40, 42 up toscored lines 16, 26 which would create a thickness to fit a frame of 3inches. Base 10 is pre-cut along diagonal lines 40, 42 up to the outerscored lines 20, 30, so that the user or shipper only needs to cutdiagonal lines 40, 42 a short distance, from the outer scored lines tothe desired thickness.

As shown in FIG. 3, after the cuts are made along diagonal 40, 42, fourtriangular sections 44, 46, 48 and 50 are created which are foldedvertically up at the score lines 16, 26, from the flat cardboard square10.

As shown in FIG. 4, triangular sections 44 and 50 are then laid backdown flat and triangular sections 46 and 48 are folded forward to reston the flat portion of base 10.

As shown in FIG. 5, triangular sections 44 and 50 are then folded up toa vertical position, to lie adjacent to triangular sections 46 and 48,creating a double thickness, protective, corrugated, corner frame fenderof the thickness desired for the object to be protected. A piece ofadhesive tape 52 may be used to hold the frame fender together. Tape 52may optionally be pre-attached to the back of base 10 at the properlocation to be used after the frame fender is folded, with a peel-offprotective strip over the exposed adhesive. Other methods may be used tohold the folded frame fender together, such as gluing each triangularsection to the adjacent section or using double-sided tape.

FIG. 6 depicts a painting 54 in a frame 56 with a frame thickness 58 onwhich one frame fender has been placed. Four frame fender cornerprotectors would be used to properly protect the frame of the paintingfrom damage during shipping or moving.

The frame fenders may be made from standard corrugated cardboard orpaperboard or other materials that may be easily cut and folded asdescribed herein.

1. A corner protector used to protect, during shipment or moving, aframe, piece of glass or any other generally rectangular object,comprising a relatively square, flat base, having on one diagonal aplurality of pre-scored, spaced diagonal lines, and the oppositediagonal being pre-cut through from the corners of the diagonal to theouter scored lines, enabling the base to be folded into any one of aplurality of thicknesses, to fit the corners of the object to beprotected.
 2. The corner protector of claim 1 in which the scored linesare all parallel and spaced evenly apart.
 3. The corner protector ofclaim 1 further comprising a length of adhesive tape attached to therear of the base.
 4. The grip of claim 3 in which the adhesive tape hasa pull-off protective strip over the adhesive.
 5. The corner protectorof claim 1 in which the base may be folded along the scored lines toaccommodate a frame thickness of from one inch to five inches.
 6. Acorner protector used to protect, during shipment or moving, a frame,piece of glass or any other generally rectangular object, comprising arelatively square, flat base of corrugated cardboard or paperboard,having on one diagonal a plurality of pre-scored, spaced diagonal lines,and the opposite diagonal being pre-cut through from the corners of thediagonal to the outer scored lines, enabling the base to be folded intoany one of a plurality of thicknesses, to fit the corners of the objectto be protected.
 7. The corner protector of claim 6 in which the scoredlines are all parallel and spaced evenly apart.
 8. The corner protectorof claim 6 further comprising a length of adhesive tape attached to therear of the base.
 9. The grip of claim 8 in which the adhesive tape hasa pull-off protective strip over the adhesive.
 10. The corner protectorof claim 6 in which the base may be folded along the scored lines toaccommodate a frame thickness of from one inch to five inches.